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Denim skirts are one way to wear a casual outfit without wearing jeans, which is especially fab when you’re a skirt gal. The four combinations here piqued my interest because they’re different and quite interesting, yet wearable and within our reach.

With a ‘70s Touch

The A-line denim midi is as ‘70s as it gets. It’s an excellent skirt shape on a curvy hourglass or pear shaped body type. For a retro flavour, combine it with a cropped pullover or fitted top. Tuck the top in if you’re long or regular waisted, and wear it out when you’re short waisted. Add chunky platforms, wedge espadrilles, or fitted knee-high heeled boots. You can achieve a similar vibe with denim culottes.

Denim on Denim & Pumps

This combination looks a little dressier because of the choice of footwear and bag. I really like the chic effect of this outfit. The length and fit of the skirt is elegant. The relaxed vibe of the shirt creates a fab juxtaposition with the severity of the pumps and the strictness of the angular clutch. The visual effect is very modern to my eye.

Tweed Jacket, Sneakers & Clutch

Try combining a denim skirt with a dressy jacket, layering tee and sneakers. Finish off the look with a graphic bag like a clutch. A mini crossbody bag is another fun option. The sporty luxe outfit is practical, spunky, creative and unique. I like the juxtaposition of the pretty and sporty.

Chunky Knit & Heeled High-Shaft Booties

This combination is the easiest to pull together and wear. Combine a short denim skirt with a chunky pullover that’s short or semi-tuck the front to create a shorter length. Add higher shaft booties or mid-calf boots, a scarf and bag, and you’re good to go. Tonal tights are a good addition in cold weather, or stick with sheer hose in nude.

Here’s a collection of denim skirts just in case you were looking for one. A fun new denim skirt has been on my radar for a while just because it’s a casual alternative to jeans. Perhaps this will be the year I add one to my wardrobe.

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I love all 4 looks! And feel inspired to start looking for a denim skirt again. I have a fab, sleek denim pencil skirt that is sadly too small at the moment, and I really liked sporting it. Seeing these looks is giving me extra ideas on how to wear one in new and on trend ways. I bet I could make it work for my new Arty Glam style direction too?-)

I love the looks (1st and last especially), but fear I would look frumpy very easily. I love the button front skirts, but fear the gaps. I have a denim pencil skirt, but it’s knee length and I don’t know if it would work in any of these combinations.

Nothing on or above the knee is the change – in line with the high waisted jeans style of the late 70’s, early 80’s. Am still having difficulty with it. The skirts just look too long in a wrong kind of way.

Gosh I have not owned a denim skirt in ages, but I loved it when I did. I tend to think of them as warm weather items but, obviously like all denim, they are a perfect trans seasonal choice. Love all the outfit, particularly the two piece dress look with the pumps. I adore how denim is such a chameleon. Dressy, casual, cozy and cool all at once. Plus, I miss two piece dresses, they were so fab, like a suit, morphing into whatever you needed them to be.

The front zipper on a traditional style denim skirt is a problem for me. One of the first things I realized after starting to post pictures on YLF was how this style of skirt drew attention to my pouchy belly – and I edited this style of skirt out of my closet. I would need to find a flat front version – not as easy.

Hmm, I’ve never owned a denim skirt. TBH I’m not a huge fan of them, but I don’t have a real poison eye for them either. I do find the fabric a little stiff to wear in a skirt so I’d need to find a really soft denim for it to appeal to me enough to try the trend. The shape I like the best out of your photos are the first and last. Love the chunky knit and ankle boots in the last photo!

I have never owned a denim skirt. When I just joined YLF I was looking for one but could not find any. Now I am not sure…the fact that denim is not a very drapey and pretty stiff makes me hesitate. Also fo some reason denim skirt seems like a spring / summer item and not fall / winter for some reason.
I think what I may consider is a white or very faded denim skirt for summer -as you said as an alternative to jeans. Hmmm…maybe?

I don’t own denim skirt at the moment. I did but I never wore them, so they got purged. Too bad, I would love to play in my closet with this looks. I do have one skirt made of navy casual chino like fabric, maybe I can try playing with that.

I have one denim skirt that I pull out in the summer when I am feeling slim enough to feel good in it. I quite like the casual look. It’s a simple at-the-knee pencil/almost straight Old Navy stretch denim. But like others, the front zip adds bulk and emphasizes any bloat. I would snap up a zipper-free version in a heart-beat if I found a reasonable one.

Love me a good denim skirt! Of course, I’m most fond of the Tom Ford and the Wrap Effect versions, which are high-end. Somehow, this is one look I think is already in the “mass” market. I believe Gap has a version on their website already.

Let us know how your clients are styling these. In these parts, denim skirts and hair in a bun communicates something far different that “I read fashion magazines.” I’ll need to keep it modern, and make it work for my age and body. But I love a good challenge!

I’ve surprised myself in warming up to the denim on denim trend. I now actually quite like the look – especially that mortgage-payment Tom Ford number in the second NaP picture. Wouldn’t invest in a denim skirt though – my experience with them has always been that they look better on a picture than they do on. Interesting though how much of an old classic they are – always a few showing up in stores every season.

I really like all of these looks but agree with Sveta that a denim skirt is hard to wear in our winters. Tights stick to the fabric and it tends to bunch uncomfortable or feel too “hard” to the hand in extreme cold. Although I did once have a long gored denim and tercel riding-style skirt that was a dream in winter weather. I liked the practicality — if it got splattered by slush (as skirts often do in my walking life) I simply tossed it in the laundry.

I have a short J. Crew denim skirt that I rarely wear despite liking it quite a lot (the quilted pencil skirt from last year.) I think it could work with the tucked in sweater — but I doubt I’ll use it that way. Hmmmm.

I love the casual 70’s vibe of denim skirts. I tossed one that was exactly like the Marnio in #3 many years ago. I wore it one time and felt odd. I probably would do a better job styling it now but I still don’t think I’d wear much. At the same time I did have a sleeveless denim dress that I wore casually in the summer. I would definitely consider an updated version of a denim dress for this year.

Oh, how funny you posted this today! Just last night I did an “outfit lab” with a denim skirt I’m considering from BR. I didn’t get enough photos, so didn’t post it… hopefully in the next couple of days. And now I have more ideas to try!

I have a denim pencil skirt from a couple of years ago (I think it’s Kut) that looks nice enough on me, but I rarely wear it. Somehow it never looks as cool and casual on me as I picture it should. I’ve only worn it in warmer weather — I wonder about trying it with tights and booties and a sweater in colder weather, as in your last example. Maybe I’ll try that before giving up on it. I think I finally realized skirts are difficult for me because the waists come up high on my short-torsoed body, and because they’re dressier and harder to move about in for my casual, active live.

I have hung on to a sleek dark denim pencil skirt with some stretch and softer than most. The hem hits just below my knees, like #3 without the bottom flare. I love the idea of a tweed jacket.
TravelSmith used to offer a soft denim button front denim skirt perennially that my sister likes. It is something like the skirt in #1, but a little fuller and works well on her curvy pear shape. A machine wash and dry favorite with some length.
I like all these renderings but can definitely see you looking stylish in #2. I like the special zipper detail on the skirt.

I got rid of all my denim skirts about five years ago and have never looked back. They’re not really my style (although I love jeans) and the stiffness annoys me. So I’ll be enjoying this look on others only.

Nice variety of looks and interesting combinations. I like the versions that mix sporty and dressy best. I have a strong sense of deja vu with the snap front skirts. They were ubiquitous at some point and at times, the styling veered toward frump. These renditions seem to have moved to the higher end of the street. Have they hit the more fast fashion market yet?

Your mixed feelings on the denim skirt are fascinating. Yes, I hear you on the potential frump-factor. It has to be styled with fashionable intention. I LOVE #2. That’s my denim skirt inspiration. Good two-piece dress description, Gryffin.

I had forgotten about how the zipper buckles on the tummy when you sit down. That can be a deal breaker for some for sure.

YES, the denim skirt is more of a transitional piece and works best with hosiery when it’s A-line or flared.

Go for it, Inge. It’s a great piece for your new style direction.

Eliza, I’m not sure. But checking out Zara, H&M and Forever 21 is a good idea.

Ginger, a chambray skirt can be lovely, and is a different vibe to denim. Softer. Preppy. Girly. No grit.

Numbers 1 and 4 look like the best options for me (petite). The seventies were my best style decade. So fun to see these denim skirts inspired by that era. I’ve owned a dark wash pencil skirt (from LL Bean – sorry! Not a trendy brand but it fits well) for several years and I wear it frequently in the summer. These looks have inspired me to try styling it in the cooler seasons. Why didn’t I think of this on my own? It would certainly shine with tall or midcalf boots and a chunky sweater or moto jacket look.

I am not a denim skirt wearer, but I look forward to seeing others wear them! On me they feel too country/boho no matter how I style them. Perhaps I’ve finally learned not to attempt to make everything mine.

Thanks for the view on chambray – that’s very helpful, and I won’t waste time trying to make it do something it can’t. I do have an actual denim skirt – 10-12 flared gores with tan pickstitching part way down. It’s barely knee-length, though, and with the flare, it also may fail the trend.

I really like the frayed Net-A-Porter skirt, but my budget doesn’t! It looks especially good with the white sneakers. I think it’s the white in the fraying being picked up.

I’m pretty confident saying that you will not find me in a denim skirt as I wore them exclusively growing up for religious reasons. But I’ll enjoy the look on others. If anyone can make them look fab it’s fabbers.

I’m not a dress/skirt gal but I do think a tencel “denim” fabric would make this idea more comfortable. I bought a tencel denim dress recently for this spring/summer so I’ll have to see if it really works out. I was hoping it would be a cool option for those extremely hot summer days we have here. One thing that worries me is wrinkling because I have to drive pretty far just to get out in the real world – so all my clothes have to pass the driving/seat belt wrinkling test.

I found a black denim pencil skirt at Gap this fall and I’ve worn it almost as often as my favorite jeans. It hits at the bottom of my knee — my older denim skirts were shorter and I rarely wore them to work, at least not without tights. This one seems more versatile and also more modern.

Love my denim skirts.i have a button down one, a midi length one and a shorter dark one. I mostly wear them in the spring with sandals, but could be for fall with tights. Not for me in the winter. Way too cold.
We have a denim factory here in GA. My favs from your pics are: the patchwork one towards the bottom, the flared bottom one, and the ragged hem one.

Love #2.
I have a A-line button front denim mini from Alexa Chung for AG I bought last year. Gives me ideas, unfortunately I need to lose about 10 lbs to make it fit.
The midis intrigue me. Especially the patchwork.

I’m not sure about this item, as much as I love seeing it on others. Over the past 5 years I have purchased 3 denim skirts, although none looked like these. I purged two of them. The most recent one is coated denim from AG and I wore it once but am going to purge that one too, because it does not stay put, it rides up as the day wears on.

While I like the second version best, the look seems to approximate my dark-denim and black denim dresses I have and am now beginning to wear again. As some of the others have said, there’s a comfort factor to consider when it comes to denim skirts.

The only denim skirt I own is a khaki one and Inwear it in the summer; I used to have a white one, which I preferred, but a bleach stain ended its stay with me.

What fun sounding outfits. Way back before I knew what wardrobe workhorses were I thought having a denim skirt would be really practical to have. I could never find one I liked, though. Will have to look through your list here to find the petites.

I love seeing so many new? new to me? styles of denim. I especially like the ruffled midi in #2 and the frayed midi. These are such chic outfits -I have to admit I never thought a denim skirt could look so stylish.

I normally prefer pants or jeans to skirts but can see myself in numbers 1 and 4. The seamed a-line styles hitting just below the knee look really stylish and flattering. Great year round casual Friday look in our climate with suede boots – either knee high or ankle – for winter, and for summer with ankle strap platform sandals or wedges. Love the 70s vibe!

I have a true mental block regarding denim skirts; it’s almost impossible for me to see them as anything but frumpy… Even on skinny young things in heels. I think they are tricky to pull off, and I’ve just seen them done wrong too many times (self included)!

Great minds must be thinking alike-I just added two new-to-me skirts to my wardrobe! One midi medium light wash fit and flare, and one maxi mid wash with cream floral embroidered back pockets. It is a little bit like #17 in the finds above.
I like denim skirts but I generally gravitate towards wearing jeans and pants more. I can find it harder to style denim skirts as many local ” holiness women” wear them – frumpily. I have fussy feet ,wonky knee( heels are therefore problematic for more than a couple hours) and a dress code at work that nixes any athletic footwear.